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W. S. SALISBURY. CLOTH CUTTING MACHINE.

No. 431,999. Patented July 8,1890.

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3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

W. S. SALISBURY. CLOTH CUTTING MACHINE.

No. 431,999. Patented July 8, 1890.

llil I. r Mu NH" W (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

W. S. SALISBURY. CLOTH CUTTING MAGHINE.

No. 431,999. Patented Jul 8, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

WILBER S. SALISBURY, or IIICAeo, IL INOIS, ASSIGNOR, ErMESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO THE ELECTRIC CUTTING MACHINE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CLOTH-CUTTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 431,999, dated July 8, 1890.

Application filed February 1'7, 1888. Serial No. 264,421. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: 2, a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3, a detail Be it known that I, VVILBER S. SALISBURY, horizontal section on the line at 00, Fig. 2; Fig. a citizen of the United States, residing at 4, a central vertical section; Fig. 5, a front Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of view; Figs. 6 and 7, respectively, a side eleva- 5 Illinois, have invented certain new and useful tion and plan view of a modified form of my Improvements in Cloth-Cutting Machines, of machine, showing only one motor in connecwhich the following is a specification. tion therewith; and Fig. 8, detail views show- This invention relates to improvements in ing various forms of cutters. machines for cutting cloth, in which a verti- Similar letters of reference indicate the [0 Cally-reciprocating knife has heretofore been same parts in the several figures of the drawoperated by a motorseparated from the knifeings. frame, and from which power has been trans- Referring by letter to the accompanying mitted by means of flexible shafts or similar drawings, Aindicates an uprightbar or stand devices. This prior construction is obj ectionard approximately triangular in cross-section 1 able, first, because of the loss of speed and being beveled toward the front edge, as more 6 power when so transmitted, but principally clearly shown in Fig. 3, and having a slotted because of the limited field of operation of a recess 13 in the front face thereof for recepmachine so actuated and the constant danger tion of the vertically-reciprocating cutter C, from entanglement of the flexible shafting as the devices for operating which will be de- 20 a consequence of the necessarily tortuous scribed in detail farther on. This standard movements of the machine in the cutting opis secured to the center of a cone-shaped base eration. D, projecting upwardly from the apex there- The prime object of this invention is to have of, which base serves to maintain the bar in the motor for operating the cutter mounted an upright position and as a sliding support 2 5 upon the knife-frame, whereby the machine for the machine in the cutting operation. is rendered free to be moved in any direction This base also has a slotted recess D therein without interference with the speed or power corresponding in location and dimensions of the cutter. with the slot in the standard in which the end Another object is to combine with a cloth of the cutter works. 011 the upper end of the 30 cutting machine one or more electric motors said standard is secured atable E, upon which mounted upon the cutter-frame and actuated is mounted to either side of the standard two by a stationary battery for operating the cutelectric motors F, of any desired structure, fingukniveg, which may be electrically connected with a A further object is to combine with such a stationary battery located at some convenient 5 machine an adj ustable resser-foot having atpoint in any well-known manner, the wires tached thereto a combined tracer and cuttingbeing preferably connected overhead so as blade, whereby not only may the line of out not to interfere with the operation of the mabe accurately traced out and followed, but chine; but as the particular manner of conthe usual nicks made for starting a cut or nection does not form a part of this inven- 0 indicatingaseam,thercby avoiding the necestion I have not deemed it necessary to heresity for the use of shears. in illustrate the same.

A further object is to provide a spring- Upon theforward ends of the shafts of the seated or yielding presser-foot, whereby a motor are mounted small gear-Wheels G G, yielding tension, increasing with the resistboth meshing with a larger gear-Wheel H,

5 ance, may be exerted upon the cloth being keyed upon the end of a shaft 1, journaled in 5 cut. I attain these objects by the devices suitable bearings J, mounted upon the table illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in E between the motors, the said shaft carrywhiching upon its opposite end a fly-wheel K for Figure 1 represents a plan View of a cutbalancing said Shaft. This shaft I has also 50 ting-machine embodying my invention; Fi mounted thereon, to the front and rear of the ion bearing J, eccentrics L, operating depending eccentric-rods M, which latter are connected at the ends by a cross-bar N, which has secured about the center of length thereof the pitman O, on the lower end of which is formed a cross-head P, and to said cross-head is secured the upper end of the cutter O. Hence whenever the motors are energized the rotary motion of their shafts will be communicated to the shaft I, and from that shaft, through the medium of the eccentrics and eccentricrods, will be converted into a reciprocating motion, which will be in turn transmitted to the cutter, and this mot-ion gives to said member its cutting effect. The cross -head is guided in its reciprocations by working in a suitable recess Q in the upper part of the standard, by which it is held in perfect alignment.

Sleeved upon the standard is the handleframe R, cut away at the upper forward side thereof to permit the free passage of the crosshead and having a short hollow neck S, cast upon or rigidly secured to the rear face thereof, and through the neck freely passes a rod T, fixed at its extremities to the base D, and a projecting lug U, cast upon the standard or secured to any other convenient and stationary portion of the frame.

The handle a is provided with a metallic tip I), socketed at its end for reception of the neck S, which is slightly longer than the socket, and said tip is also provided with an axial socket of less diameter than the end socket, which has a female screw-thread for reception of a male screw (Z, the opposite smooth end of which latter works loosely in the said hollow neck, and has a vertical hole 6 therein, through which passes the rod T, so as to prevent the rotation of the said screw. Thus it will be seen that whenever it is desired to secure the handle at any point upon the standard or rod it is only necessary to rotate the handle in the proper direction, when it will move toward the neck, crowding the latter in turn against the rod T until the grip thereby obtained is sufficient to hold the handle at the desired point. A reverse rotation of the handle will release the grip on the rod and leave the handle free to be slid up or down upon the rod and standard.

As shown in Fig. 5, the front portion of the handle-frame is made considerably wider than the standard, in order that the lower end thereof may serve as a presser-foot for holding down the goods during the cutting operation, and in this widened front portion at the lower end is secured a tracing knife or blade f, substantially triangular in side elevation, projecting forward from said blade and sharpened on the lower side thereof, so as to form a cutting-edge. This tracing-blade has a twofold function to perform, each important to the successful employment of a machine of this class, first, as a tracer to enable the operator to more easily and accurately trace out the lines of cut marked upon the upper layer of cloth, which its location immediately in front of and in a line with the cutter especially adapts it to do, and, second, as a cuttingblade for starting a out upon the edge of the goods to aid the insertion of the knife in beginning a cut, and also to cut nicks in the goods during the progress of or after the cutting operation for indicating the location of seams, which otherwise must be done with the shears after the work is completed, and which obviously increases the liability of mistakes and consequent loss, because only a few layers can be cut at a time with the shears. In both of these operations the handle is the medium through which the power is applied, for the first to guide the machine as a whole and for the second to bear the blade down and make the out while the machine is stationary upon the work-table.

It is frequently desirable, especially in cuting thin fabrics, to have the presser-foot exert a yielding pressure upon the goods durting the cutting operation, and to this end I have provided the spiral spring T, coiled about the rod T between the lug U and the handle frame or neck S, so that the tension thereof will operate to depress the said frame, and it will be observed that the higher the pile of cloth to be cut (thereby necessitating increased force from the presser-foot) the greater will be the tension exerted by the said spring.

Another important feature of my invention is the combination therewith of an incandes- IOC cent electric lamp for supplying light to the operator, for, being a practical cutter, I have found the usual stationary light wholly inadequate to render the pattern-lines clearly discernible at all times, and this fact will be apparent even to one unskilled in the art when it is borne in mind that the machine must be constantly shifted in various directions and frequently turned completely around, and that the operator must therefore often work in the shadow. To avoid these objections I have mounted an incandescent lamp 9 upon an arm h, projecting upward from the table and forward of the cutter, so that the rays of light therefrom will fall upon the goods directlyin front of the cutter, thereby rendering the finest and most intricate lines easily discernible, and no matter in what direction the machine may be moved through the goods the light will always fall upon the part thereof being operated upon and the operator can never get in his own light. The lamp is preferably in electric circuit with the motor, or at least derives electricity from the same source, and the light will be of such brilliancy that so far as the work of this machine is concerned any other light in the room will be useless.

In operation the machine is moved up to the goods by the handle, the forward part of the circular base passing underneath the pile until the cutter-bar or standard is up against the edge of the goods, when the handle is TIS loosened and brought forciblydown upon the goods until the tracer-blade passes through and cuts a short slit in each layer entirely through the pile, after which the handle is again elevated and secured at the desired height (if no yielding tension is desired) and the standard is forced slightly into the slit in the goods. The machine is now ready for operation, and the electric current to the motors may be governed by any ordinary switch device located at some convenientpoint within easy reach of the operator.

From the foregoing it will be understood that the broad idea of my invention is an electrically-actuated movable cuttingmachine in which the motive power is carried upon and mechanically connected direct with the reciprocating cutting-blade as contradistinguished from other cloth-cutting machines of a similar character, in which the cutting-blade has been actuated by a motor disconnected from and therefore not supported by the movable frame of the machine.

IVhilel have shown and described two motors in connection with my machine, such construction is preferred merely because of the increased speed and power and the more uniform action obtainable thereby; but as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, only one motor need be employed to successfully operate the machine, and for that reason I do not desire to be limited to any particular number or construction of motor. Neither do I desire to limit myself to any specific form of cutter, for various forms may be and have been employed in connection with my machine besides the saw-blade of the preferred construction-such, for example, as the straight beveled concave and convex toothed forms shown in Fig. 8, which are only a few of the many forms which may be employed.

I do not herein desire, however, to claim, broadly, the reciprocating knife in combination with the electric motor for giving reciprocatory motion thereto, for this feature is fully described and claimed in my application filed February 11, 1887, Serial No. 227,338.

Having shown and described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a cloth-cutting machine, a cone-shaped base, a slotted triangular standard secured to the center of said base, and a vertically-reciprocating cutter working in said slotted standard, in combination with electric motors supported upon said standard, a shaft journaled in said standard, a gear-connection between said motors and shaft, and an eccentric and rod connection between said shaft and the cutter, substantially as described.

2. In acloth-cutting machine, a cone-shaped base, a slotted triangular standard secured to the center thereof, and a vertically-reciprocating cutter working in said slotted standard, in combination with electric motors supported upon said standard, ashaft journaled in said standard, a gear-connection between said shaft and the motors, eccentrics mounted upon said shafts, eccentric rods actuated thereby, a pitman, a pivot-connection between said rods and pitman, the said pitman being provided with a cross-head guided in the standard and to which is secured the cutter, substantially as described.

3. The combination, in a cloth-cutting machine, of the slotted standard, the vertically-. reciprocating cutter-bar, and a fixed guiderod, with a vertically-yielding presser-foot, a handle therefor, a screw-bolt projecting at right angles from but sliding freely upon the guide-rod, and a screw-thread connection between said bolt and handle, substantially as described.

4. In a cloth-cutting machine, the combination, with the base, the slotted standard secured to said base, a vertically-reciprocating cutter working in said standard, a lug projecting from the rear face of said standard, and a guide-rod secured, respectively, to said lug and the base, of a vertically-yielding presser-foot provided with a neck through which said rod passes, a coil-spring sleeved upon said rod between said neck and the lug on the standard, a screw-bolt projecting from but sliding freely upon said rod, a handle provided with a socket for reception of said neck, and a screw-thread connection between said handle and the screw-bolt, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with a cloth-cutting machine and the cutter thereof, of a vertically-movable presser-foot provided with a tracer projecting forward of and in a line with the cutter, the lower edge of said tracer being sharpened so as to form a cutting-edge, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with a cloth-cutting machine and the cutter thereof, of a vertically-yielding presser-foot, a handle therefor, and an adjustable lock device connecting said handle and a stationary portion of the machine, whereby the presser-foot may be secured at any point of its adjustment, anda tracer projecting forward of and in a line with the cutter, the lower edge of said tracer being sharpened so as to form a cutting-edge, substantially as described.

IVILBER S. SALISBURY.

Witnesses:

W. Rossrrna, FREDK. H. MILLS. 

